Filter system including integrated diagnostics

ABSTRACT

A filter system for filtering a working fluid including a disposable filter having an inlet to be disposed in fluid communication with a working fluid and an outlet to be disposed in fluid communication with a machine. The disposable filter includes a sensor assembly or accessory for monitoring a characteristic of the working fluid passing through the disposable filter and/or an operational condition of the disposable filter. The disposable filter includes a communication module for communicating the monitored characteristic or operational condition to a controller. The controller is configured to analyze the received information and generate an optimal maintenance schedule and predicted remaining useful life of the machine, disposable filter, or working fluid. A method of operating the filter system is also provided.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The subject application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/560,979 filed on Sep. 20, 2017 entitled “Filter System Including Integrated Diagnostics”, U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/560,854 filed on Sep. 20, 2017 entitled a “Disposable Filter Including an Integrated Sensor Assembly”, and U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/560,919 filed on Sep. 20, 2017 entitled a “Disposable Filter Including an Accessory Port”, the entire disclosures of these provisional patent applications are incorporated herein by reference.

FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE

The present disclosure relates generally to a filter system for filtering a working fluid passing through a filter that is disposed in fluid communication with a machine. More specifically, the present disclosure relates to a filter system which can autonomously provide information related to various characteristics of the filtered working fluid or the operational condition of the associated machine.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This section provides a general summary of background information and the comments and examples provided in this section are not necessarily prior art to the present disclosure.

It is known in the art for various types of machinery, e.g., automobiles, construction equipment, and manufacturing devices, to include filters for removing impurities from working fluids such as fuel, oil, gas and coolant. Cartridges of the filters are known to clog with impurities and thus must periodically be replaced. Additionally, it has been found that significant information about the working fluid and other parts of the machinery can be obtained based on characteristics of the working fluid as it passes through the filter. For example, when filtering bulk fuel delivered to a storage site, a filter system can identify contamination in the fuel and therefore identify supply chain problems. As another example, when filtering working fluid to an engine or hydraulic system, the filter system can identify abnormal chemical or physical properties of the lubricant or hydraulic fluid. Accordingly, it is known to manually conduct working fluid sampling and analysis to detect problems associated with the working fluid and other parts of the machinery for ensuring product or process fluid quality. In some cases, the filter cartridges and working fluid are manually inspected based on predetermined, static inspection schedules. However, such manual processes are not accurate enough to achieve the best cost of operation, and are subject to wasteful over-maintenance or damaging under-maintenance. It is also known for condition-based monitoring systems to be built into machines to actively monitor their working fluids. However, such condition-based monitoring systems are not readily serviceable and replaceable, and can add significant expense to the machine. Accordingly, there remains a need for improvements to such monitoring systems to reduce maintenance costs and improve machine performance, machine useful lifetime and fluid quality.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The subject invention is generally directed to a filter system which includes a disposable filter including at least one sensor assembly or accessory for monitoring a characteristic of the working fluid passing through the filter and/or an operational condition of the corresponding machine. The filter system includes a controller disposed in communication with the disposable filter for receiving the monitored characteristics and preforming prognostics that predict the machine state of deterioration. In other words, based on parameters of the working fluid as supplied by the sensor assembly or accessory of the disposable filter, the controller is configured to develop an optimal maintenance schedule as well as a prediction of the machine's remaining useful life. Thus, the filter system with the integrated sensor assembly or accessory advantageously allows condition-based maintenance and/or process fluid quality control to be quickly and easily added to existing filter systems, as needed and desired, without expensive retrofit and thus with minimal expense. Other advantages of the subject invention will be appreciated in view of the following disclosure.

The subject invention is also directed to a method of operating a filter system. The method includes connecting a disposable filter including an integrated sensor assembly or accessory to a machine such that the filter is configured to receive a working fluid of the machine. The method also includes gathering characteristics of the working fluid of the machine passing through the disposable filter with the integrated sensor assembly or accessory. The method further includes communicating the characteristics of the working fluid to a controller disposed in communication with the integrated sensor assembly or accessory. The method also includes analyzing the characteristics of the working fluid and establishing an optimal maintenance schedule based on the characteristics of the working fluid with the controller.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The drawings described herein are for illustrative purposes only of selected embodiments and not all possible implementations, and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure.

FIG. 1 illustrates a cross-sectional view of a disposable filter including an integrated sensor assembly;

FIG. 2 illustrates a cross-sectional view of a disposable filter including an accessory port for receiving an accessory; and

FIG. 3 illustrates an exemplary flow-chart of a method of monitoring a filter system to autonomously obtain integrated diagnostics, according to an aspect of the subject disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE ENABLING EMBODIMENTS

Example embodiments of a filter system which includes integrated diagnostics in accordance with the present disclosure will now be more fully described. Each of these example embodiments are provided so that this disclosure is thorough and fully conveys the scope of the inventive concepts, features and advantages to those skilled in the art. To this end, numerous specific details are set forth such as examples of specific components, devices and mechanisms associated with the filter system to provide a thorough understanding of each of the embodiments associated with the present disclosure. However, as will be apparent to those skilled in the art, not all specific details described herein need to be employed, the example embodiments may be embodied in many different forms, and thus should not be construed or interpreted to limit the scope of the disclosure.

As best illustrated in FIGS. 1-2, the filter system 10 includes a disposable filter 11 having a housing 12 which has a generally cylindrical shape and extends between a top surface 13 and a bottom surface 15. The top surface 13 defines an inlet 14 to be disposed in fluid communication with a source of working fluid as well as an outlet 16 to be disposed in fluid communication with a machine 17 for receiving the working fluid after passing through the disposable filter 11. A filter media 18 is disposed within the housing 12 in a path of fluid communication between the inlet and outlet 14, 16 for filtering the working fluid prior to its delivery to the intended machine 17. A threaded, female connector 19 is disposed adjacent a top portion of the filter housing 12 for allowing the disposable filter 10 to be threaded onto a corresponding male connector 21 of the filter system 10 to allow for easy attachment of the disposable filter 10 (i.e., a disposable “spin-on” type filter) along a path of the working fluid towards the machine 17. A gasket 23 is provided which encircles or is disposed around the top surface 13 of the disposable filter 10 for sealing the filter 10 when it is connected to corresponding machinery 17.

As best illustrated in FIG. 1, according to one aspect, the disposable filter 10 can include an integrated sensor assembly 20, which is disposed within the filter housing 12 and thus is integrated into the disposable filter 11 when connected to the filter system 10. A detailed disclosure of the disposable filter 11 with an integrated sensor assembly 20 is provided in related U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/560,854, filed on Sep. 20, 2017, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. As best illustrated in FIG. 2, according to another aspect, the disposable filter 11 can include an accessory port 200 for being coupled with an accessory 202 that is configured to monitor a characteristic of the working fluid passing through the inlet 14 or the outlet 16 of the filter 10 and/or an operational condition of the disposable filter 11 or corresponding machine 17. A detailed disclosure of the disposable filter 10 including an accessory port 200 and accessory 202 is provided in related U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/560,919, filed on Sep. 20, 2017, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.

In either aspect, the sensor assembly 20 or accessory 202 is configured to measure and monitor a desired characteristic of the working fluid passing through the disposable filter 11—such as the working fluid pressure, temperature, viscosity, flow rate, moisture or additive content, electrical properties, magnetic properties—or any other filter performance characteristic(s) of interest. As best shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the disposable filters 11 include a communication module 22, such as an antenna, RFID tag, or the like, for wirelessly communicating the measured/monitored characteristic of the working fluid or the disposable filter 11 to a controller 24 disposed remotely from the disposable sensor 11. However, the communication module 22 can also be wired to the controller 24 without departing from the scope of the subject disclosure. According to an aspect, the monitored characteristics of the working fluid or the performance characteristic(s) of the disposable filter 11 can then be analyzed by the controller 24 to autonomously determine the condition of the disposable filter 11 or the working fluid passing therethrough. Put another way, the data communicated by the disposable filter 11 can then be utilized to determine if the disposable filter 11 and even the machine 17 in communication with the filtered working fluid are in proper operating condition or alternatively need service or replacement. For example, based on complete or nearly complete operating history of the disposable filter 11 and the working fluid passing therethrough, an optimal maintenance schedule and a prediction of the disposable filter 11, the working fluid, and the machine's 17 remaining useful life can be determined. Accordingly, as will be appreciated by the subject disclosure, the integration of the disposable filter 11 with either an integrated sensor assembly 20 or accessory 202 into a filter system provides a low-cost approach to implementing condition-based maintenance of the machine 17 in communication with the working fluid.

As best illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, the controller 24 can also be disposed in communication with at least one component system 26 of the machine 17, such as pumps, hoses, a transmission, etc., to couple data obtained from these other sources of the machine 17 with the disposable filter 11 or working fluid characteristics to further aid and optimize a prediction of the machine's state. For example, characteristics gathered from a filter bypass valve operation and working fluid temperature of the disposable filter 11 can be combined with engine speed data and other engine operating data of the machine 17 to determine normal versus abnormal bypass valve operation. While the filter bypass valve can be expected to operate at high engine revs when the working fluid is cold, if the filter bypass valve is detected to be operating when the oil is warmed up, this indicates an overloading of the disposable filter 11.

As best illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, the controller 24 is also in communication with, or configured to generate, a notification mechanism 28, such a cellphone text, email, or visible/audible alert, for informing users or maintenance personnel of the machine 17 as to any rapid changes in the machine's operating state. This notification mechanism 28 can also be used to inform machine users or maintenance personal of an optimal maintenance schedule of the disposable filter 11, working fluid, or machine 17 as well as a prediction of these components' remaining useful lives.

As best illustrated in FIG. 3, the subject disclosure is also related to 100 a method of operating a filter system 10 to autonomously obtain integrated diagnostics of a disposable filter 11, working fluid, and/or related machine 17. The method 100 begins at step 102 by physically connecting the disposable filter 11 including the integrated sensor assembly 20 or accessory 202 into working fluid communication with the machine 17. Once the disposable filter 11 is physically connected, and as described in more detail in the incorporated disclosures of corresponding U.S. Provisional Application Ser. Nos. 62/560,854 and 62/560,919, the method proceeds at step 104 by having the sensor assembly 20 or accessory 202 gather desired characteristics of the working fluid passing through the disposable filter 11—such as the working fluid pressure, temperature, viscosity, flow rate, moisture or additive content, electrical properties, magnetic properties—or any other filter performance characteristic(s) of interest. As best illustrated at step 106, the method of operating the filter system 10 can also include gathering data from other sources outside of the disposable filter 11, such as from the pump, hose, or transmission component systems 26 of the machine 17, to further couple data from these other sources on the machine 17 with the filter characteristics to further aid and optimize a prediction of the machine state. Once these characteristics are obtained, the method proceeds at step 108 by communicating the characteristics to a controller 24 disposed in communication with the disposable filter 11 as well the other machine's component systems 26, if applicable. Once the controller 24 receives these characteristics, the method proceeds at step 110 by analyzing the parameters to develop an optimal maintenance schedule and remaining useful life for the machine 17, disposable filter 11, and/or working fluid. At step 110, the controller 24 can also analyze the parameters to observe machine 17, filter 11, or working fluid deterioration. Once the optimal maintenance schedule, remaining useful life, or deterioration is determined, the method can proceed at step 112 by sending a notification, such as a text, email, or visible/audible alarm, to a machine's user or maintenance personnel to alert them of this developed information. Once received, the machine's user or maintenance can take appropriate action. Thus, the method 100 advantageously allows condition-based maintenance and/or process fluid quality control to be quickly and easily added to existing filter systems, as needed and desired, without expensive retrofit and thus with minimal expense. Additionally, the method 100 also advantageously generates and provides accurate notifications which avoid wasteful over-maintenance or damaging under-maintenance of the disposable filter 11, working fluid, or machine 17.

The foregoing description of the embodiments has been provided for purposes of illustration and description. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the disclosure. Individual elements or features of a particular embodiment are generally not limited to that particular embodiment, but, where applicable, are interchangeable and can be used in a selected embodiment, even if not specifically shown or described. The same may also be varied in many ways. Such variations are not to be regarded as a departure from the disclosure, and all such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of the disclosure. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A filter system for filtering a working fluid comprising: a disposable filter having an inlet to be disposed in fluid communication with a working fluid and an outlet to be disposed in fluid communication with a machine; said disposable filter including a sensor assembly or accessory for monitoring a characteristic of the working fluid passing through the disposable filter and/or an operational condition of the disposable filter; said disposable filter including a communication module for communicating the monitored characteristic or operational condition to a controller; and said controller configured to analyze the received information and generate an optimal maintenance schedule and predicted remaining useful life of the machine, disposable filter, or working fluid.
 2. A filter system as set forth in claim 1, wherein said controller is in communication with at least one component system of the machine for obtaining operational data from the component system and utilizing the received operational data in conjunction with the information received from the disposable filter to generate the optimal maintenance schedule and the predicted remaining useful life of the machine, disposable filter, or working fluid.
 3. A filter system as set forth in claim 1, wherein said controller is positioned remote from and wirelessly connected to said communication module to allow the monitored characteristic or operation condition to be wirelessly transmitted to said controller.
 4. A filter system as set forth in claim 1, wherein a component system of the machine is in electric communication with said controller, wherein said component system is configured to transmit machine data associated with said component system to said controller, and wherein said controller is configured to couple data obtained from said sensor assembly of said disposable filter with said machine data from said component system.
 5. A filter system as set forth in claim 1 further including a notification mechanism in electrical communication with said controller for receiving information from said control and to inform a user of said information.
 6. A filter system as set forth in claim 5 wherein said notification mechanism is a cellular phone.
 7. A filter system as set forth in claim 1 wherein said disposable filter includes a housing defining said inlet and said outlet.
 8. A filter system as set forth in claim 7 wherein a filter media is positioned in said housing between said inlet and said outlet for filtering the working fluid as it passes between said inlet and said outlet.
 9. A filter system as set forth in claim 8 wherein the housing has a generally cylindrical shape and extends between a bottom surface and a top surface, and wherein said top surface of said housing defines said inlet, and wherein said top surface of said housing further defines said outlet at a position that is radially inward of said inlet.
 10. A filter system as set forth in claim 9 wherein said filter media is positioned radially between said inlet and said outlet.
 11. A filter system as set forth in claim 7 wherein said housing includes a connector for allowing said housing to be coupled with the machine.
 12. A filter system as set forth in claim 11 wherein said connector is a threaded connection for allowing said housing to be threaded onto a corresponding threaded connection on the machine.
 13. A filter system as set forth in claim 1 wherein said disposable filter includes an accessory port for being coupled with an accessory that is configured to monitor a characteristics of the working fluid.
 14. A method of operating a filter system, comprising: connecting a disposable filter including an integrated sensor assembly or accessory to a machine such that the filter is configured to receive a working fluid of the machine; gathering characteristics of the working fluid of the machine passing through the disposable filter with the integrated sensor assembly or accessory; communicating the characteristics of the working fluid to a controller disposed in communication with the integrated sensor assembly or accessory; and analyzing the characteristics of the working fluid and establishing an optimal maintenance schedule based on the characteristics of the working fluid with the controller.
 15. The method as set forth in claim 12 further including sending a notification including the established optimal maintenance schedule to a notification mechanism.
 16. The method as set forth in claim 12 further including gathering machine data from a component system of the machine and transmitting the machine data to the controller.
 17. The method as set forth in claim 14 further including coupling the data obtain from the sensory assembly of the disposable filter with the machine data. 